I would like to see the output of the: ldd your-zig-executable :)
Zig defaults to statically linking musl when targeting Linux, so the output will not be very interesting unless you target dynamic musl, or glibc, or FreeBSD/NetBSD.
Why is Zig so cool?
11–20 of 527 posts
Re: Why is Zig so cool?
#12> I can’t think of any other language in my 45 years long career that surprised more than Zig. I can easily say that Zig is not only a new programming language, but it’s a totally new way to write programs, in my opinion. To say it’s merely a language to replace C or C++, it’s a huge understatement. I don't understand how the things presented in this article are surprising. Zig has several nice features shared by man…
This. Is Zig an interesting language? Yes sure. But “a totally new way to write programs”? No, I don’t see a single feature that is not found in any other programming languages.
Re: Why is Zig so cool?
#13I totally vibe with the intro but then the rest of the article goes on to be a showcase bits of zig.
I feel what is missing is how each feature is so cool compared to other languages.
As a language nerd zig syntax is just so cool. It doesn’t feel the need to adhere to any conventions and seems to solve the problems in the most direct and simple way.
An example of this declaring a label and referring to a label. By moving the colon to either end it makes labels instantly understood which form it is.
And then there is the runtime promises such as no hidden control flow. There are no magical @decorators or destructors. Instead we have explicit control flow like defer.
Finally there is comptime. No need to learn another macro syntax. It’s just more zig during compilation
Re: Why is Zig so cool?
#14I totally vibe with the intro but then the rest of the article goes on to be a showcase bits of zig. I feel what is missing is how each feature is so cool compared to other languages. As a language nerd zig syntax is just so cool. It doesn’t feel the need to adhere to any conventions and seems to solve the problems in the most direct and simple way. An example of this declaring a label and referring to a label. By mo…
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Re: Why is Zig so cool?
#15I totally vibe with the intro but then the rest of the article goes on to be a showcase bits of zig. I feel what is missing is how each feature is so cool compared to other languages. As a language nerd zig syntax is just so cool. It doesn’t feel the need to adhere to any conventions and seems to solve the problems in the most direct and simple way. An example of this declaring a label and referring to a label. By mo…
matklad did it justice in his post here, in my opinion
https://matklad.github.io/2025/08/09/zigs-lovely-syntax.html
Re: Why is Zig so cool?
#16> I can’t think of any other language in my 45 years long career that surprised more than Zig. I can easily say that Zig is not only a new programming language, but it’s a totally new way to write programs, in my opinion. To say it’s merely a language to replace C or C++, it’s a huge understatement. I don't understand how the things presented in this article are surprising. Zig has several nice features shared by man…
Of which, perhaps, the author isn't aware? Perhaps the author has very narrow experience in programming languages. Or it's hyperbolic.
>Perhaps the author has very narrow experience in programming languages.
I got that impression as well.
Xi's impressed about types being optional because they can be inferred.
That's ... hardly a novelty ...
Re: Why is Zig so cool?
#17> I can’t think of any other language in my 45 years long career that surprised more than Zig. I can say the same (although my career spans only 30 years), or, more accurately, that it's one of the few languages that surprised me most. Coming to it from a language design perspective, what surprised me is just how far partial evaluation can be taken. While strictly weaker than AST macros in expressive power (macros ar…
This is the real answer (amongst other goodness) - this one is well executed and differentiated
Every language at scale needs a preprocessor (look at the “use server” and “use gpu” silliness happening in TS) - why is it not the the same as the language you use?
Re: Why is Zig so cool?
#18I've tried writing a similar post, but I think it's a bit difficult to sound convincing when talking about why Zig is so pleasant. it's really not any one thing. it's a culmination of a lot of well made, pragmatic decisions that don't sound significant on their own. they just culminate in a development experience that feels pleasantly unique.
a few of those decisions seem radical, and I often disagreed with them.. but quite reliably, as I learned more about the decision making, and got deeper into the language, I found myself agreeing with them afterall. I had many moments of enlightenment as I dug deeper.
so anyways, if you're curious, give it an honest chance. I think it's a language and community that rewards curiosity. if you find it fits for you, awesome! luckily, if it doesn't, there's plenty of options these days (I still would like to spend some quality time with Odin)
Re: Why is Zig so cool?
#19Zig being able to (cross)compile C and C++ feels very similar to how UV functions as a drop in replacement for pip/pip-tools. Seems like a fantastic way to gain traction in already established projects.
Strangler fig
Re: Why is Zig so cool?
#20Is it cool? It seems to be in nether land between Rust and Go. Not sure what is the unique use case for Zig.